All must combat scourge of compulsive gambling

As a compulsive gambler who has abstained for more than 45 years, I have been asking our governors and legislators to warn people about gambling, an insidious disease that is harming us and our children.

We will never stop gambling because the state makes billions of dollars in revenue every year. But gamblers risk bankruptcy, foreclosures of their homes, imprisonment from crimes to support gambling, even suicide.

We will soon be getting off-track betting (OTB) parlors throughout the state, and now the state wants to legalize sports betting in Atlantic City. Someday we will call New Jersey the gambling state and not the Garden State.

I thought we elected politicians to do what is right for people and not their pockets. Some of the casino revenue should be allotted for rehab purposes, including having insurance companies recognize compulsive gambling as a disease no different than alcoholism or drug addiction.

Secondly, the state should invest in billboards with telephone numbers in large print and the words: "If you have a gambling problem, call Gambler's Anonymous at 1-877-994-2465 ASAP or the Council on Compulsive Gambling at 1-800-GAMBLER" (1-800-426-2537).

There are warnings on lottery tickets and in casinos, but these are either too small or are ignored.

Parents and grandparents should also look into how gambling is affecting college students, some of whom have gambled away their tuition money and had to drop out.

Please take the time to call your representatives to see what they are doing about this insidious hidden disease.

Dominick Magliaro

Toms River

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All must combat scourge of compulsive gambling

As a compulsive gambler who has abstained for more than 45 years, I have been asking our governors and legislators to warn people about gambling, an insidious disease that is harming us and our

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